1938 Gibson L-5

This guitar has an unusually rich and significant
musical history. You heard it on Hank Williams’
“I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” “Lovesick
Blues,” and “Cold, Cold Heart.” It was used
to record “Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain,” one
of Chet Atkins’ earliest recordings for Bullet
Records. And it was featured all over Patsy
Cline’s debut album, Patsy Cline. It even
toured the Pacific with Frank Tennille—yes,
that Tennille’s father—and Bob Crosby’s band
during WWII. The battered and bruised guitar
showcased here is a 1938 Gibson L-5 used
extensively by Nashville session and radio guitarist
Jack Shook.

Shook was a pioneer of the Nashville session
scene. He was one of the first to make playing
the guitar in the studio—on both radio and
record dates—a full-time and decent paying
job. Besides having his mainstay gig as WSM’s
acoustic guitarist—which included playing on
the Grand Ole Opry weekly program—for 45
years, Shook used his L-5 in his singing group
the Missouri Mountaineers, on the Teddy Bart
Noon Show and countless other country
recordings and radio programs. In addition to
the aforementioned legends Shook worked
with in the studio, he also recorded with
Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs, Hank Snow, Eddy
Arnold, and Ray Price.

Shook’s L-5 has a carved spruce top complete
with bound f-holes, carved figured-maple
back and sides, a blonde finish, and multi-ply
binding. The guitar features a figured maple
neck—ebony necks were also available—
that’s matched with a bound ebony fretboard.
It has an adjustable ebony bridge and
a gold-plated tailpiece with an engraved silver
insert that was new to the model in 1937.
The multi-bound blackface headstock sports
a pearl flowerpot inlay and Grover Imperial
tuners. The guitar was originally equipped
with a raised multi-bound pickguard, but that
became a casualty from years of radio gigs,
studio sessions, and worldwide traveling.

As you can see, this L-5 has some unusual
wear and tear above the low-E string. This
looks similar to the wear pattern on some
of Dave Matthews’ Taylor acoustics that’s
caused by his unusually heavy upstrokes. To
our knowledge, Shook wasn’t a heavy-handed
picker, but instead this wear resulted from
him playing the guitar upside down. Though
his L-5 was strung up normally, Shook played
his guitar left-handed (as shown above).

A special thanks to Cheryl Offutt and her husband
Jeff Offutt for the opportunity to feature
her grandfather’s fine instrument.